The Mets and Yankees are the two highest-paid players in Major League Baseball, with player salaries totaling over $600 million. According to Spotrac. The luxury tax bill, due to be finalized later this year, will bring the total to well over $700 million.
With all that money, the teams have selected a total of three players for this year’s All-Star Game roster, which was announced Sunday night. The Yankees will represent pitcher Gerrit Cole and injured outfielder Aaron Judge in Seattle on July 11. First baseman Pete Alonso will represent the Mets.
Both teams performed well last year, earning a combined 10 All-Star selections.
The Yankees are 46-38, the third wild card spot in the American League to the playoffs, and have had at least one player in 90 of the 92 All-Star Games since 1933. there is Due to injury and rest, it remains an open question whether anyone will play in this year’s game.
The AL starting pitcher has hit 19 home runs but has been limited to 49 games due to a toe injury that will keep him out indefinitely. Cole, who is having a great season with a 2.79 ERA, will start on Sunday and will probably next start on July 7, potentially taking a day off his usual rest day.
Despite his rest problems, Cole spoke as if he was going to play in the game.
“I really want to get started,” Cole told reporters over the weekend. “I’ve got to see that. I don’t know what’s going to happen next week and beyond. I know there’s a lot of good guys out there.”
His starting lineup would include former Texas Rangers Yankee Nathan Eobaldi and Los Angeles Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, who started in the AL last year.
Alonso is a reasonable choice as the lone national team player for the Mets, who were greatly disappointed with a 38-46 record despite a record yearly salary. His .221 batting average is a career-worst, behind outfielder Brandon Nimo and shortstop Francisco Lindor in overtime wins, but his 25 home runs ranks second in the National League behind Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves. is.
Alonso also announced that he will participate in the home run derby on July 11, which he has won in the past. They won the Derby in 2019 and 2021 and reached the quarter-finals last year. It’s hard to compare because formats change from year to year, but his 174 home runs in three tournaments is the most home run total in tournament history.
Manager Buck Showalter told reporters over the weekend that he believes an All-Star selection and participation in the Home Run Derby will help Alonso emerge from his recent slump.
“I hate to see good people beat themselves up,” Showalter said. “But I think it’s a good time to remind him of how good a player he is. I think he’s one of the most unlucky guys in the league, so to speak. Pete is as real as it gets.”
The Mets went into the season aiming for the World Series, but team owner Stephen A. Cohen admitted last week that they could be a seller before the trade deadline. Adding salt to the wound: Atlanta, leading the Mets in the NL East by 18.5 games, sent an MLB-leading eight players to the All-Star Game despite spending more than $100 million less in labor costs than regional rivals. will send.
